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Created as a stunning celebration of the great British brand's 100 years of sports car excellence, the one-off CC100 looks both to the past and the DBR1 – Aston Martin's greatest sporting triumph on the track – and to the future with its teasing glimpses of potential future design direction.

The 6.0-litre, V12-powered concept car made its world debut by completing a lap of the famous Nordschleife at Germany's ADAC Zurich 24 Hours of Nürburgring race.

It lapped the circuit together with the 1,000km race-winning 1959 DBR1, with British racing legend Stirling Moss at the wheel.

CC100 is the most tangible expression yet of the brand's year-long 2013 centenary celebrations.

Viewed by tens of thousands of lucky spectators in Germany, the radical speedster was driven by Aston Martin CEO Dr Ulrich Bez.

He said: "CC100 is the epitome of everything that is great about Aston Martin.

"I have nicknamed it 'DBR100' because of its affinity to the great 1959 race-winning cars and, of course, our 100-year anniversary in 2013.

"But this car is more, even, than a simple 'birthday present' to ourselves: it shows that the soul of Aston Martin – the thing that differentiates us from all the other car makers out there – is as powerful as ever and I very much hope that everyone who catches a glimpse of it at the Nürburgring enjoys seeing it."

Designed and constructed in under six months at Aston Martin's global headquarters in Gaydon, working with key supplier Multimatic Inc, under the leadership of Special Projects and Motorsport Director David King, the finished look of the two-seater CC100 is the work of Design Director Marek Reichman, working alongside the brand's Chief Exterior Designer, Miles Nurnberger.

Nurnberger explained: "The brief was very simple, yet enormously testing: create something that reflects the 100 years of Aston Martin heritage and signals the future of the brand...

"The idea of an iconic speedster concept that nods to the Le Mans and Nürburgring winning cars of 1959 soon came, and we have had complete freedom to shape this car."